Stop Operating! I’m Awake: When Tennessee Surgery Goes Wrong
While mistakes in anesthesia are rare, they do happen and nothing is more frightening than when a patient finds him or herself awake during a surgery.
And “anesthesia awareness” does happen. Consciousness while under general anesthesia happens in about one or two of every 1000 cases in which general anesthesia is used. Consider the following real life stories:
- In 1998, Carol Weiher was undergoing eye surgery when she suddenly heard music playing and someone saying, “Cut deeper, pull harder.” Unable to move or speak, the Reston, Virginia woman later said, “I was doing a combination of praying and pleading and cursing and screaming . . . but I knew there was nothing that was working.
- Simon Rosenqvist awoke during surgery this year for a collapsed lung in Sweden. “It was terrible, my worst nightmare,” he later reported. “My brain kept telling me over and over ‘say your name, say something, wiggle your toes’, but I was completely incapable of saying something or moving my body at all.
- A Los Angeles woman, Jana-Marie Bonar awoke during a 2006 lung operation to find she couldn’t move, but was fully aware of what was happening to her. Not every case involves feeling pain but Bonar did. “I felt incredible pressure on my throat. And I felt two fingers start cutting me. I felt their fingers. I felt everything.” She still has nightmares about her horrific experience and has not healed from the trauma.
In order to avoid this horrible situation, anesthesia experts suggest that you spend time discussing the side effects and risks of anesthesia. It is especially important to talk about any prior problems you have experienced. If you are facing heart surgery, emergency surgery or a C-section, you are more likely to wake up. A device that monitors brain function is available today and it would be wise to ask about it.
If you have suffered injury or distress due to anesthesia errors, you may have a medical malpractice case. Call the Memphis medical malpractice specialists at Bailey & Greer if you have any questions about your experience. We can be reached toll-free at 901-680-9777, or fill out the confidential form on this page and we will contact you.
Since graduating magna cum laude in 2005 from the University of Memphis School of Law, Thomas has helped make a difference in the lives of victims of serious personal injury, wrongful death, and professional negligence. Thomas has extensive trial experience in both state and federal court. Among other victories in the courtroom, Thomas obtained several impressive jury verdicts and settlements
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